The Coronavirus pandemic has ensured that 2020 has been an unusual year for the Indian automobile industry. First the nationwide lockdown meant that no cars were sold in the country in the month of April, and when the sales restarted in May, it sprung another surprise. The Indian domestic car market got a new leader when it comes to monthly sales. 3,212 units of the Hyundai Creta were sold during the period, which made it the top seller in the country for the first time.
Creta accounted for nearly half of total cars Hyundai sold in the domestic market in May.
This position has for long been occupied by cars from the country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki and it now has a new claimant. This number is being attributed to the pre-lockdown bookings Hyundai received for the Creta which have now been converted into sales. The new generation of the SUV, that was launched in March just before the lockdown began, accounted for nearly half of total cars (6,883) Hyundai sold in the domestic market in May. However, this is still less than half of 13,865 cars Maruti Suzuki sold during the same time, making it regain the overall top position once again.
Also read: Car Sales May 2020: Hyundai India Registers A Slump In Sales Of 78.7%
Maruti Suzuki remained the highest selling car maker in the country by selling 13,685 cars in May.
And there are still some more surprises on the bestsellers list for May 2020. It you were a expecting an affordable car from Maruti Suzuki to take the second position, well it is not. It was in fact the Ertiga MPV which secured spot number 2 with total sales of 2,353 units. The next 3 positions have been taken by the Maruti Suzuki Dzire, Mahindra Bolero and the Maruti Suzuki Eeco respectively. The picture may well again change in June as carmakers open more showrooms across the country and sales pick up.
